Gluing device



B. E. RICHARDSON 2,360,582

GLUING DEVICE Filed Nov. 14, 1941 Patented Oct. 17, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GLUING DEVICE Bayard E. Richardson, Grand Rapids, Mich. Application November 14, 1941, Serial No. 419,042

Claims. (01. 144-280) I This invention relates in general to gluing devices and has particular regard to a type of device adapted to apply glue to the inner surfaces of a slot or groove in a panel. 77

This invention is adapted particularly for use in the manufacture of furniture where, in the past, it has been customary to apply glue by hand to form the joints between two adjacent pieces or panels in a piece of furniture. It is customary to form these joints by having one of the panels longitudinally slotted or grooved to receive the edge of an adjacent panel or part. applied to the inner surfaces of the groove and when this operation is performed by hand it is almost impossible to prevent the smearing" of the glue on the surface of the panel outside of the groove. When this occurs the additional operation of removing the glue becomes necessary. In the past this has been done either by wiping the fluid glue from the corner formed between the adjacent panels or waiting until the glue hardens and then chipping it off. In either case it is an operation which takes time and sometimes has a detrimental effect on the finish since such finish is difficult to apply to a surface where glue has been or where there may still be a small amount.

To overcome this difficulty I have devised the apparatus which will hereinafter be more fully explained and the primary object of which is to apply glue to the inner sides of a groove in a l panel or piece of wood as above mentioned in such a manner that none of the glue will over flow or be applied to any part of the panel outside of the groove. It will be obvious that if this result is accomplished no later operation of removing excess glue becomes necessary.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a glue applicator which has a rotary movement, an edge of which is adapted to be received within the groove to be glued, and which will.

carry the glue from a source of supply and deposit it on the inner surface only of the groove.

Still another objectof the invention is the provision of novel means for actuating the glue applicator.

Other objects and purposes of the invention which have not been specifically mentioned herein will appear more fully as the description proceeds.

To the accomplishmentof the foregoing and related ends said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The annexed drawing and following description set forth in detail certain means a d O The glue is mode of carrying out the invention, said means constituting however, but one of various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

Insaid annexed drawing, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various viws:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the device.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section through a portion of the device shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a further enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the glue applicator and the mounting means therefor, and

Fig. 4 is a still further enlarged fragmentary section taken substantially on the plane of line 4-4 of Fig. 2, showing a portion of the applicator located within a groove to which glue is to be applied. 7

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, a base or platform, the various elements of the invention may be mounted. Adjacent one end of the platform a glue pot 2 is mounted which is of the usual character being provided with inner and outer spaced apart walls having heating coils 2a therein for the purpose of melting down the glue 3 inside of the pot.

A cover 4 is located on top of the glue pot and suitably connected thereto by means such as the Screws 5. The top 4 is provided with an opening 6 therein which terminates at opposite sides in elongated narrow slots 1.

At the under side of the top 4 downwardly extending ears are either secured thereto or cast integrally therewith which ears are provided with threaded holes to receive trunnion screws 9, which screws in turn may be tightened and held in place by means of lock nuts l0. Adjacent each of the ears 8 a bell crank lever is located which is provided with the arms H and I2 and each of which is mounted on a screw 9 at the juncture of the arms. The arms H at their outer ends are connected by means of a cross-piece [3.

While the various types of applicators which may be used to'apply the glue may be many, the one which has been proven satisfactory in practice and which is shown here for purposes of illustration consists of a wheel [4 which is provided at its center with a hub [5 extending on either side thereof. Each end of the hub is adapted to receive the ends of bearing screws I6 which pass through the outermost ends of each arm 12 of the bell crank levers. The screws I is provided on which.

are then held in place by means of lock nuts I1 (Fig. 3). The wheel I 4 is thus freely rotatable.

The outer peripheral edge of the wheel I4 is provided with a continuous groove I8, thereby permitting each face of the wheel to extend on either side of the groove l8 in the form of flanges I9. Each flange l9 adjacent the bottom of the groove I8 is provided witha plurality of circumferentially spaced apart openings 20. It will thus be seen with reference to Fig. 2- that a portion of the wheel I4 is submerged in the melted glue in the glue pot and the wheel is mounted in a position so that a portion of it will extend upwardly above the top of the glue pot and through the slots 1. Rotation of the wheel in either direction will cause an amount of glue to adhere to it both on the outer surfaces as well as within the groove l8 and the openings 20. Unless this glue is otherwise removed it will be carried upwardly beyond the top of the glue pot.

From the manner in which the machine operates it willbe obviously necessary to remove all of the excess glue from the outer flat faces of the wheel I4, and for this purpose I provide scraping blades 2| which are mounted on the cover. 4 and which are provided withtransvers ly extending slots 22 adapted to receive screws 23 to therebysecure theblades in spacedepart relation and to the COVBI'i. :Becauseof thefact that it sometimes becomes necessary to use wheels of different widths to accommodate different wi'dthgrooves inthe panels, these scraping blades 2| areradjustably mounted by means of the slots 22. The inner edges of these blades are beveled as best shown inFig. 3 and ,are set so that the inner edges are parallel and spaced apart substantially the :width of fthe'wheel. "It will be clear then that the wheel I4 as it rotates in a counter-clockwise direction carrying glue with it as one side moves upwardly, will pass between the longitudinal sides of the scraper blade 2! and all of the glue on theouter flatfaces of the wheel will be-removed' therefrom, the only glue remaining onthe wheel will then be located withinthe continuous groove I8, theopenings 20 and theperipheral edges of theflanges, l9.

Atone side of the cover-4 an arm 24 extends outwardly and may be either secured thereto or .cast integrally therewith. One leaf 25of a hinge is thenrsecured to thearm 24 bymeans of screws 26 which pass through elongatedslots'zfia in'the leaf 25 to provide longitudinal adjustment. The other leaf 2'! of the'hingeextends over the cover toward the wheel and .has secured thereto an elongated finger 28 which may takethe form of a wire and which is bent downwardly at its outer free end and is received within the grove I8 on the edge of the wheel I4 as shown in Fig. 2.

The wire 28 is substantially the width of the groove I8 and as the wheel continues to rotate in a. counter-clockwise direction, that portion of the finger 28 between the flanges I9 will force the glue from the peripheral groove 48 outwardly through the openings 2!). Since a portion of the edge of thewheel is received within the groove of the material which is to be glued, theglue will therefore beapplied to the-sidesof the groove by being forced outwardly through the openings 29.

A sleeve 29 i also cast integrally with the top or cover 4 at the under side thereof and is adapted to receive'and have rotatably mounted therein a shaftl3fl. One end of the shaftis provided with a friction wheel 3| which bears against thezperipheries of the flanges I9. The other end of'the shaft 3!! is provided with alarge pulley :76

32 which is driven by a belt 33 from a smaller pulley 34 mounted on the shaft 35 of a motor 35. A compression spring 31 is suitably mounted and located between the under side of the cover 4 and the connecting cross-piece I3 between the bell crank levers II which will have a tendency to rotate the levers in a clockwise direction about their pivotal points where they are mounted on th screws 9. The wheel I4 being also mounted between these levers will thus .be urged toward the'left as viewed in Fig.2 and against the friction wheel 3| which is being continuously driven. The frictional contact between the wheel I4 and the small wheel 3i will cause a counter-clockwise rotation of the wheel I4.

In the operation of the machine a wood panel 38 such as i commonly used in the manufacture of furniture is provided with a grove which is to receive the edge of the panel and form a joint. The groove in the panel is substantially the same width or slightly larger than the width of the wheel I4 and may receive the edge of the wheel as shown inFigs. 3 and 4. The'wheel M will be continuously rotated and will carry glue from the glue pot upwardly as above explained to a point Within the confines of the groove in the panel. The excess glue on the outside of the wheel will have been scraped off by the scraper blades 2i and the glue remaining in the groove I8 will be forced outwardly through the openings 20 by means of the outer free end of the finger 28, thus depositing the glue only on the inner surfaces of the groove in the panel. It will be apparent in operating the machine that the grooved panel 38 to be glued is manipulated by hand and ;is applied to the gluing machine by inserting the upper exposed edge of the glue wheel I4 into the groove at one end of the panel and the panel is then moved in the direction of rotation of the wheel until the wheel has traversed the entire length of the groove. No glue will have been deposited on the panel outside of the groove andtherefore any further operations usually necessary in removing excess glue will be obviated.

The machine has been made and used and has .been found to operate atisfactorilyin practice invention may be usedinstead of the one here explained, change being made as regards the mechanism herein disclosed, provided however, that the means stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be employed.

I, therefore particularly point out and dis tinctly claim, as my invention:

1. A device for applying glue to the inner surfaces of a groove in a panel comprising, a glue pot having a quantity of glue therein, a cover thereon having an elongated slot therein, a wheel rotatably mounted in said glue pot being partially submerged in the glue and extending upwardly through said elongated slot, a continuous groove in the outer edge of said wheel to thereby provide flanges around the peripheral ed e thereof, said flanges having a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart openings therethrough, said wheel upon rotation carrying with it a quantity of glue upwardly through said elongated slot, scrapers mounted on said cover at each side of 2. A device for applying glue to the inner surfaces of a groove comprising, a glue pot having a, quantity of glue therein, a wheel rotatably mounted in said glue pot being partially submerged in the glue and extending above the top of the glue pot, a continuous groove in the peripheral edge of said wheel thereby providing flanges at each side thereof, said flanges having a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart openings therethrough, and said wheel adapted to carry a quantity of glue at its edge from both faces of said wheel, and a finger extending into said second groove, the edge of said wheel adapted to be received in said first groove, whereby upon rotation of the wheel the finger will force glue outwardly through said openings and onto the surfaces of said first groove.

3. A device for applying glue to the inner surfaces of a groove comprising, a glue pot. having a quantity of glue therein, an applicator having spaced apart sides with openings therethrough adapted to move downwardly into the glue and carry an amount thereof upwardly between said sides, means for removing glue from the outer sides of the applicator, and means located between the sides of the applicator to force the glue from between the sides of the applicator outwardly through said openings and onto the surfaces of the groove at a predetermined point in the movement of the applicator.

4. A device of the class described comprising, a glue-pot having a quantity of glue therein, a rotatable applicator wheel having a part of its periphery submerged in said glue and a part extending above the glue, said applicator wheel being adapted to enter a groove in a piece of work, a groove in the periphery of said applicator wheel and a stationar finger extending into the groove in the periphery of the applicator Wheel at a point within the groove in the piece of work for the purpose of ejecting glue from the groove in the applicator wheel at a predetermined location within the groove in the piece of work.

5. The elements of claim 4 in combination combined. with lateral recesses in said applicator wheel communicating with the groove therein.

BAYARD E. RICHARDSON. 

